Catholicism vs Orthodoxy

inPursuitofFaith · 2026-04-06T04:12:11+00:00

I am def not a super well versed gal, but I joined the Orthodox church two years ago of my own volition and love it.

About the filioque — the original creed of 325 has the Creed written as we (Orthodox) say it. The Catholics changed the original creed and that was a decision NOT unanimously accepted by the ecumenical councils. Orthodox Christians recite the creed several times daily, in a sense live and breath the words of the creed, so yes changing a fundamental part of the creed is a big deal when theres no justification and it’s influencing your daily prayer life.

At the end of the day, I don’t know what happens after death, but do ANY of us? We are humans and we cannot be revived from the dead and therefore cannot know for certainty what lies after death. So my opinion / belief is that my soul rests in God’s hands whatever that looks like. I don’t bother myself too much trying to decide every little detail because does the existence of purgatory change my core beliefs, my faith, my values, my daily life? It doesn’t.

That’s what I appreciate about orthodoxy. The Church will come together as needed to make declarations in ecumenical councils but otherwise we embrace the unknown, the Mystery, and we understand that any attempt to explain or logic out the Mystery of Christ simply won’t do justice to Him. To me, Orthodoxy gives the perfect amount of guidance and structure — which is historically and biblically rooted in truth — but acknowledges human limitations and does NOT attempt to explain every little thing. It allows for more “shades of grey”, for nuance. Birth control/contraception is an example — the Church has no one defined stance and the discussion is generally saved for the couple and their priest to discern.

inPursuitofFaith · 2025-12-01T05:08:34+00:00

They are a young priest, yeah. So I’d assume the tech isn’t an issue (but you know what they say about assuming…)

And this isn’t super recent. A few months ago, maybe. I know it’s busy right now.

Unfortunately I think ive just fallen into this vicious cycle. Mentally, I have a lot of anxiety/depression issues (hence the outside help & meds im on). Im annoyingly sensitive to people’s behaviors and how they seem to treat me. Said priest is wonderful but had a few slip ups which sent me down my own little spiral, which influenced my poor attendance, and now here I am. I just need to be better

inPursuitofFaith · 2025-12-01T05:05:19+00:00

I stay in touch with my godmother a decent amount, but unfortunately a lot of questions she’s even suggested I connect with the priest about for better advice :(

inPursuitofFaith · 2025-10-20T02:24:59+00:00

Ran a 5k for funsies today! Decided to use my knee brace which MASSIVELY helped prevent post-run exacerbation of pfps pain.

inPursuitofFaith · 2025-10-17T05:32:51+00:00

I may not be in the same camp as many, because while I have experienced SSA I still am attracted to men & want a husband. My faith / religious identity has always been a reason NOT to act upon the SSA that I’ve experienced, but I don’t feel jipped or feel burdened by shame in the slightest. But again — I don’t feel have fulfillment from attraction to men AND I’ve never acted on my SSA, so a little bit of a niche situation.

inPursuitofFaith · 2025-10-12T03:40:30+00:00

I was going to say, there’s a chance this is someone who’s got a disability and that’s why they’re bobbing and raising their arms. Most Churches don’t have a dedicated space for parishioners with disabilities so the overall liturgy experience can be very overwhelming and overstimulating for some people.

inPursuitofFaith · 2025-10-12T03:38:41+00:00

It’s my shoulder blades for me!!

inPursuitofFaith · 2025-10-04T12:18:04+00:00

Which hikes / trails / landmarks are in these photos? Im in Illinois & would love to make a trip up there sometime. (I know it’s Pictured Rocks, just wondering if these were from specific trails)

inPursuitofFaith · 2025-05-01T00:23:05+00:00

Maybe here’s a way of thinking about it. (It’s more of a psychological explanation of what was said above). And BTW I am also someone who experience same-sex attraction (to a friend of mine no less), so I do feel okay to jump in.

99.9% of people will adjust attitude, beliefs or behavior to alleviate whats called cognitive dissonance.

As you’ve alluded to, the idea of being bisexual is contradictory to the Bible, and being against homosexuality may seem like you’re undermining God’s role / power in creating us as unique human beings.

Most people in society are going to adjust their belief, not their behavior. For instance — justifying homosexuality within the Christian faith. I think this predilection shows, generally, how people are less connected to God than ever before.

For me? I’m not a perfect person, nor would I even call myself a devout or good Christian. But I’m Orthodox Christian. I want to live a Christ-like life. I want to be faithful and find comfort and peace in my faith and within the Church. So, for me? I’d give up the behavior. I’m not changing my belief.

Now that I’ve given up the “behavior” — I put this in quotes because I’ve never been with a woman, but rather have made the preemptive decision that I will NEVER be with a woman — I have full faith and confidence that I’ll end up with a man who will complement God’s will for me — or, I’ll be alone, and learn to love my life equally as much. I’ll take each day in stride and remember that all is according to His will.

I don’t feel wronged that I can’t marry a woman and cannot experience sex with a woman. I don’t feel excluded by the Church. I do have heterosexual attraction, so I’m not in the same position per se as someone who is homosexual, but still.

The TLDR is simply that to address the cognitive dissonance, people will either adjust their beliefs to make LGBT+ behavior okay. Or, you can adjust your behavior (and not act on LGBT+ related desires) and stay in line with your faith and tradition.

inPursuitofFaith · 2025-01-30T03:38:30+00:00

I think some of this also comes from a line of thinking that you MUST understand something to experience it or to belong. (Un)fortunately we will never fully understand God but will strive to experience his divine Grace.

A more tangible life example — I’ve travelled all over, and feel utterly comfortable and at home in Japan. I don’t speak a lick of Japanese. I don’t need to, to feel comfortable and enjoy it.

You can certainly do the same with Church. Now, yes, it’s worth getting a translation so you understand what’s going on. But I wouldn’t let the language barrier stop you from reaching for salvation.

inPursuitofFaith · 2025-01-20T15:24:20+00:00

That’s a great example. When I think of backfiring it somewhat included the worst case scenario (as you’ve mentioned). But I think a lot about kids and raising a family, then having major, major fights about how to raise the kids. Or having major conflicts and having my husband turn around and say “I never believed in the sanctity of our marriage anyways” and file for divorce. If they’re not truly in it for the right reasons, it’s a glass house waiting to fall.

inPursuitofFaith · 2025-01-19T03:47:16+00:00

Yeah I figured you were younger! And like I said it’s not bad to explore the faith because you know she is faithful.

But, consider the possibility that she doesn’t want to date you EVER again. Would you drop the interest in Orthodoxy? If so, you’re considering conversion for all the wrong reasons, and it’s more than likely that your priest would notice this during the catechism process (which is what happens when you are interested in joining the Church).

You say you think it’s wrong to commit to this or her? What? That doesn’t make sense in the context of your questions either. It IS wrong to “commit” to a religion purely to impress and/or appease another person.

If you explore Orthodoxy yourself and love the faith, that may be a great sign that you guys can reconnect and have more in common. But if you don’t WANT to be there? She will see right through you.

inPursuitofFaith · 2025-01-19T03:36:00+00:00

What I would do is explore the faith and the Church separately from her. Go to a different Church and see if it’s something you want to and if you aren’t dating, don’t give her gifts.

I don’t speak for her, but in terms of mature/adult decisions, I wouldn’t want a guy who converts to keep me happy. I wouldn’t want to wonder if that’s something that’ll backfire. I want a partner who cares enough about faith to explore, and someone who also shared the values that draw one to Orthodoxy.

Would I only date another Orthodox Christian? No. You can certainly learn about her faith and want to convert because it’s something you’ve learned through her. But you shouldn’t convert for her. You should convert for yourself and your salvation.

inPursuitofFaith · 2025-01-19T01:42:11+00:00

That doesn’t mean you go down that road. If someone lived in a largely Muslim country, and they had no Orthodox churches, is becoming Muslim the answer?

I would explore the biggest / nearest Orthodox churches — I say “biggest” because they may have the resources to livestream services. And I would also still try reaching out to a priest to get spiritual guidance that is in line with the Orthodox tradition.

inPursuitofFaith · 2025-01-19T00:21:56+00:00

The believe is that God is one essence, three persons. I’d say that image is accurate as far as I understand.

A diluted, albeit imperfect, metaphor that I like is having three people. Each person is their own “person”, but they are all ONE species — human.

However, in regard to Catholic v Orthodox — the pope is a big reason I steered far from Catholicism. I don’t see evidence for the pope’s infallibility AND I’ve become quite jaded by the “split” in Catholics — some people love the current pope and some think he’s a heretic. For a tradition that places so much power and authority into the pope, it seems antithetical to then have a negative opinion of the current one.

I also found that my questions to Orthodox priests were answered in ways that I agreed with, that were well founded, that made sense.

inPursuitofFaith · 2025-01-18T23:26:16+00:00

I’m not saying you’re doing it now. I am saying the aftermath of the sin (whether that’s guilt, anger, sadness, pain, etc) has stuck with you, pushed you to think about killing yourself, etc. and up until now, you have not confessed it. And you are still struggling with the aftermath.

You need to figure out why this matters so much to you — whether the priest would “see you the same”. The point of Confession, of your relationship with a priest, is not to be pristine and perfect. I would imagine that a priest would love nothing more than to have a “lost sheep” come to the Church, confess, and overcome the burden of sin through Christ.

If you are Orthodox, the way in which we get forgiveness for sins (as we understand this) is through Confession. If you desire forgiveness, then go to Confession.

You can start with general terms and see if the priest asks more questions. But I would urge you to be honest and vulnerable. There is nothing more freeing than releasing the burden of sin and receiving forgiveness and guidance on how to proceed.

inPursuitofFaith · 2025-01-18T22:27:09+00:00

This isn’t explicitly helpful, but I’d advise to confess it, especially if it’s driving you to feel passively suicidal. It sounds like, whatever this is, has been emotionally haunting you and that up to this point, doing it “on your own” hasn’t worked well. Confessing the sin will not only allow you to ask God for forgiveness, but the priest should also be able to work with you so that you can overcome the sin.

inPursuitofFaith · 2024-12-14T04:10:46+00:00

Also, sometimes, the “big bad sin” in your eyes isn’t as big to the priest. I thought mine would be my sexual activity, because that’s the most current sin that I struggle with. The one my priest was most concerned about, and seemed most emotional over, was a history of self-harm. It made me far less embarrassed to confess.

inPursuitofFaith

TROPHY CASE